ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Appoints Executive Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative medicines to address unmet medical needs in central nervous system (CNS) disorders, announced Michael J. Yang has joined ACADIA as Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. Mr. Yang succeeds Terrence O. Moore, who has served as ACADIA’s Chief Commercial Officer since 2013, and is now retiring.

"I am delighted to welcome Michael to our team," said Steve Davis, ACADIA’s President and Chief Executive Officer. "Michael is a seasoned executive with extensive expertise in successfully launching and growing major pharmaceutical products across a number of therapeutic areas, including CNS. His patient-centric approach, proven leadership skills, and focus on innovation will be of great value to the ongoing commercialization of NUPLAZID in Parkinson’s disease psychosis and its potential expansion into other areas of large unmet need."

"Central nervous system disorders are one of the biggest challenges to our healthcare system and severely impact the lives of both patients and their families," said Michael Yang. "As an innovative, first-in-class product, NUPLAZID is transforming the treatment of patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease psychosis. I look forward to building on the success of NUPLAZID."

"We thank Terry Moore for his significant contributions to ACADIA over the past four years," added Mr. Davis. "Under his leadership, we have laid a strong foundation for the continued growth of NUPLAZID. We wish him well in his retirement as he plans to move back to the East Coast and spend more time with his family."

Mr. Moore commented, "I am proud of what we have been able to achieve – building the commercial foundation, launching NUPLAZID, and bringing this novel drug to patients in need. After more than 30 years in the life sciences industry, I’m pleased to hand the reins over to Michael to lead the next phase of growth for ACADIA, and I look forward to watching the company reach new levels of success."

Mr. Yang joins ACADIA from Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, where he served as President of Janssen Biotech Inc. and was responsible for building Janssen's U.S. Immunology business, generating more than $8 billion in annual revenues. Mr. Yang began his career at Johnson & Johnson in 1997 and held numerous senior commercial positions such as President, CNS where he was responsible for growing the anti-psychotic long-acting therapy portfolio. His broad background of commercialization and general management experience also includes roles as the Worldwide General Manager of the Medical Device companies of Therakos, Inc and Veridex, LLC, where he launched new platforms, expanded global revenues and diversified the product lines. Prior to that, Mr. Yang was Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Oncology at Ortho Biotech Inc.

Mr. Yang earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, Marketing from San Diego State University. Mr. Yang will serve as a member of ACADIA’s executive team and report to Mr. Davis, effective today.